


this is our last goodbye

by saddestboner



Series: Tumblr Prompts [21]
Category: Baseball RPF
Genre: Gen, M/M, Tumblr Prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-28
Updated: 2018-02-28
Packaged: 2019-03-25 01:22:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 453
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13823490
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/saddestboner/pseuds/saddestboner
Summary: They stand there, eyes locked, neither moving away.





	this is our last goodbye

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted [here](http://nullrefer.com/?v) in response [this meme](http://nullrefer.com/?https://saddestboner.tumblr.com/post/171288033972/khirsahle-send-me-a-number-and-a-pairing-and). 
> 
> Title from "Last Goodbye," by Jeff Buckley.

Brad finds him before the game, icing up in the trainer’s room. Ian acknowledges him with a nod and goes back to his sudoku puzzle, but Brad doesn’t leave like he’d expected him to.

He pulls a chair up to Ian and sits down next to him.

“Anything I can help you with, skip?” Ian asks, putting his puzzle book aside.

“I was wondering,” Brad starts, rubbing at his chin. “Joe Torre used to do this thing with the Dodgers the final game of the season. He’d pick a player and let him manage the whole game. I was wondering if you wanted to do it for me tonight.”

Ian raises his eyebrows, not entirely sure he heard Brad right. “You want me to manage?”

The twittersphere is gonna love this.

“Yeah,” Brad says. “I could ask one of the other guys, like Vic or Zimm. But I think you’re the guy for the job.”

Ian nods, thinking this over some. “All right,” he says, after a brief contemplation. “I’ll do it.”

Brad flicks his eyes down to the sudoku puzzle he’d interrupted. “I’ll let you get back to it,” he says, getting up and pushing the chair back.

Ian lifts his sore ankle out of the tub of ice he’d been soaking it in and shakes off the excess water. “Hold on, skip.” He gets up and nudges the bucket away, then steps up to Brad and puts a hand on his shoulder.

“Yeah?” Brad asks.

Ian narrows his eyes at him. He’s always thought of Brad as more of a peer than a leader, and maybe that was part of the problem. Ian had played with guys who are Brad’s age and Brad had played with guys Ian’s age. It was hard to follow the lead of a guy you could see yourself shooting the shit and chugging beers with. 

“Good luck,” Ian says. He slips his hand away from Brad’s shoulder.

“You too, Kins.”

They stand there, eyes locked, neither moving away.

Ian remembers hearing something when he was younger. That if someone holds your gaze for more than six seconds, they either wanna kiss you or kill you. He’s not actually sure if it’s true.

Brad breaks eye-contact first and between one breath and the next, he leans in and kisses Ian softly, mostly on the corner of his mouth. His lips are soft and dry, and his stubble brushes against Ian’s cheeks.

When he pulls back, he leaves the trainer’s room without looking back.

This isn’t the oddest interaction Ian’s ever had with a coach or a teammate. Not in the least.

He feels the scrape of Brad’s stubble on his cheeks for the rest of the night.

**Author's Note:**

> The author of this piece intends no insult, slander, or copyright infringement, and is not profiting from this work. This story is a complete work of fiction and does not necessarily reflect on the nature of the individuals featured. This is for entertainment purposes only. If you found this story while Googling your name or the names of your friends, hit the back button now.


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